Going North by Janice Harrington

Transcription

1 Going North by Janice Harrington (1) At Big Mama s house everyone sits around the supper table talking about life up North. Everyone talks and talks about how much better the North is, how Daddy can find a good job there, and how I can go to a better school. But isn t it good here? Can t we just stay? (2) I don t want to go. I want to stay in Big Mama s kitchen, helping her churn the butter up-down, up-down, taw-whomp, taw-whomp, swapping stories, and watching Big Mama knifescrape a sweet potato, dragging its blade across orange pulp and sharing a sweet treat. (3) I don t want to go, I tell Big Mama. But Going-North Day hurries to our door like it s tired of our slowpokey ways. (4) Everybody comes to say goodbye; uncles, aunts, cousins too, Brother, Baby Sister, and me picked up, put down, passed around, and tickle-twirled all over the place. Everyone says, Goodbye, we ll miss you. (5) I slip off my shoes and push my feet into the rusty sand. I wish my toes were roots. I d grow into a pin oak and never go away. Would they let me stay if I were a tree? (6) Car loaded, everything packed, goodbyes said. We re almost ready. (7) I run to Big Mama one last time. She hugs me tight. Take care of your mama, she says. Be a good girl, Jessie. Y all take care. (8) Bye-bye, Big Mama! Bye-bye! (9) Our station wagon pulls away, banana bright, rolling, rolling down a red dirt hill. We re going North. (10) Goodbye, Big Mama. Goodbye, Popalop. We re going North, leaving Alabama far behind.

2 (11) We re going North in a yellow station wagon, Mama, Daddy, Brother, Baby Sister, and me looking out, looking at the world going by, red sand and cotton fields, pines marking the sky like black crayons, listening to the tires make a road-drum, a road-beat: good luck, good luck, good luck. (12) Kudzu vines covering everything, kudzu leaves like big green hands clapping, clapping and waving to us. Brother pointing at all he sees, Baby Sister bouncing on my lap, lap, lap, and Mama helping Daddy, checking the map. Daddy s eye steady on the road, then studying the gas gauge, measuring the miles. (13) Going by an old man selling peaches, going by tin roofs, front porches, going by brown girls jumping rope, rope, rope, brown legs flying high. Maybe later they ll play Little Sally Walker. (14) Do they play Little Sally Walker in the North? Do they play ring games? Oh, wipe your weepin eye, Oh, wipe your weepin eye. (15) Cotton fields stretch out, brown shoulders dragging croaker sacks, brown fingers picking cotton under a red pepper sun. (16) We re going on. Cotton fields getting smaller, going by. Even the people getting smaller, going by, Mississippi on and on. Mississippi, Mississippi going by. (17) Lunchtime, are you hungry? Picnic basket and paper plates, Big Mama s tea cakes, potato salad and lemonade, cold chicken and corn bread. (18) The car smells like chicken. Our fingers taste salty sweet. We re riding in a lemonade car, a yellow station wagon, heading North. (19) Sitting in the back, I see a big world. I hear the tires bumping, beating out good bye, good bye, good bye.

3 (20) Down the road and the baby s crying. Mama s singing, hush, hush. Brother s fussing, hush, hush. Daddy s watching the gas gauge. It s running out, child, running out. (21) Where will we go, Daddy? Where will we go? Hush now, quiet now, Daddy s got to drive. Gas gauge getting low, getting low. Can t stop just anywhere. Only the Negro stations, only the Negro stores. (22) Mama s praying, sees another town up ahead. Daddy s searching, looking out, holding the wheel knuckle-tight. Even Brother seems to know. Baby s quiet, won t even cry. (23) Will we make it? Will this place serve Negros? Gas gauge says almost gone almost gone. (24) Joe s Gas, up ahead, plenty of Negro faces, plenty of Negro smiles. Daddy breathes a heavy sigh. Mama hugs Baby Sister tight, tight, tight. Brother wants candy. Me too! Me too! (25) Joes comes smelling like gasoline and fills our tank. Y all cutting it close, he says. Daddy sighs and shakes his head. (26) We re on the road again, moving fast, car filled with gasoline, Brother wearing a chocolate bar. Mama s hand on Daddy s shoulder. Long road, but we re moving fast, moving fast. (27) I think about Daddy s hands all knuckle-tight. I think about Mama s prayer and the gas gauge running out. Maybe the North will be better --- May be, May be, May be. (28) Arkansas, now, and it s getting late. Still a long way to go. (29) Sister s asleep on Mama s lap, Brother s curled up puppytight, but I m looking out. (30) Ink-black, soot-black, skillet-black night. The road hurtling by. Mama and Daddy talking in low voices.

4 (31) Outside I see stars and the Big Dipper. We re following the Big Dipper, going North. (32) More stars than I can count, blue and white like dashboard lights. They re gleaming in and I m looking out. (33) Sleepy now. Nighttime rolling by. The road whispers, the tires mumble good night, good night, good night. (34) Daybreak, and Daddy beside the road, tired, stretching, seeing the way ahead, all of us waking up. (35) Missouri stone, Missouri hills, are we there yet? (36) Almost there. We re leaving Dixie, almost there. Will I like the North? Honey, I don t know. (37) The road-drums, the road-beats don t know, don t know, don t know. (38) Are we there yet? Almost there. Will we be there soon? Almost there. And then --- (39) Welcome to Nebraska, the sign says. (40) This is it? No more cotton fields, no more red sand, no more June bugs on cotton string. (41) Instead, I see black dirt everywhere, black magic, North magic. Nebraska rolling by on a grassy rug. (42) Brother presses his nose against the window. Baby Sister sniffle-sighs, sniffle-sighs. Mama soothes us with her smile. But I just keep staring out, looking and looking. Until finally I see ---- Lin-coln, Lin-coln, Lincoln, Nebraska! (44) We re here now, Daddy says. Going to start a brandnew life. We re going to be pioneers. (45) Daddy, Mama, Brother, Baby Sister, and me, all pioneers, all looking out, hearing a heart-drum be brave, be brave. Be brave. We re together. Pioneers

5 1. How does the narrator of the story feel about going North at the beginning of the selection? A. Excited for the new opportunities B. Confused because she thinks her life is good C. Upset to be going someplace strange D. Nervous about the unknown 2. Circle the following examples of figurative language. A. But Going-North Day hurries to our door like it s tired of our slowpokey ways. B. The road whispers, the tires mumble good night, good night, good night. C. I slip off my shoes and push my feet into the rusty sand D. Daddy s eye steady on the road, then studying the gas gauge, measuring the miles. E. More stars than I can count, blue and white like dashboard lights. 3. Which of the following statements show this piece is historical fiction? A. No more cotton fields, no more red sand, no more June bugs on cotton string. B. Can t stop just anywhere. Only the Negro stations, only the Negro stores. C. Going to start a brand-new life. We re going to be pioneers. D. We re following the Big Dipper, going North. 4. What is the tone of the writing in paragraph 22? A. Excited B. Tense C. Hopeful D. Scared

6 5. What does the author mean in the following sentence? Instead, I see black dirt everywhere, black magic, North magic. Nebraska rolling by on a grassy rug. A. There is a sense of hope; that life will be better. B. Nebraska is a good state for farming because of the black dirt. C. Nebraska looks different than Alabama. D. The family is excited about farming in Nebraska. 6. What is the meaning of the word steady in the following sentence? Daddy s eye steady on the road, then studying the gas gauge, measuring the miles. A. Serious and sensible B. Not changing or letting up C. Blurry; not clear D. Watering; irritated Daddy s searching, looking out, holding the wheel knuckle-tight. 7. Select words that are synonyms for the bold, underlined word in the above sentence. A. Hunting B. Discovering C. Noticing D. Seeking E. Picturing 8. How does the narrator s feelings change from the beginning to the end? A. Scared to happy B. Excited to unhappy C. Nervous to excited D. Uncertain to hopeful